<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Son of Agni, Daughter of Tui by Aaronna</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26870938">Son of Agni, Daughter of Tui</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aaronna/pseuds/Aaronna'>Aaronna</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Soldier of Healing [8]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: The Last Airbender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>(duh), Aang is clueless, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Episode s01e18 The Waterbending Master rewrite, Gen, Hair Brushing, Hurt!Spirit, Hurt/Comfort, I didn't edit this before posting, Inspired by MuffinLance's Tumblr page, Miyuki adopts Iroh, No beta: we die like men, Not Canon Compliant, Sexually Confused Sokka, Sokka needs sort out his feelings, Spirit is Chaos, X_X, Yugoda is a grandmother figure, androgynous Zuko, engagements, herbalist Zuko, subtle rebellion, the great spirits laugh at adults making plans</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 19:15:45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,591</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26870938</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aaronna/pseuds/Aaronna</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Herbalist!Zuko AU - Episode The Waterbending Master rewrite</p><p>Only girls can be healers and only boys can be fighters? Well this was going to be fun.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Iroh &amp; Miyuki (Avatar), Spirit &amp; Katara (Avatar), Spirit &amp; Sokka (Avatar), Spirit &amp; Yue (Avatar), Spirit &amp; Yugoda (Avatar), Spirit/Sokka (Avatar), Spirit/Yue (Avatar), one-sided Sokka/Yue (Avatar) - Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Soldier of Healing [8]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1910278</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>110</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>696</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Son of Agni, Daughter of Tui</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/MuffinLance/gifts">MuffinLance</a>.</li>



    </ul></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Spirit was freezing. He had forgotten about buying a parka after learning about the comet, so now he was trying to stay warm in nothing more than his herbalist robe while trying not to firebend, which would burn him out if he didn't eat enough, but they had limited supplies and didn't know how long it would take to get to the Northern watertribe. He had been pulling tiny amounts of heat from the sea water, but it was barely enough to keep his teeth from chattering.</p><p>He knew he wasn't the only one suffering. Appa was barely staying in the air, so Aang was spending as much time as he could off of the air bison to lighten the load. Sokka had been bored out of his mind until Spirit pulled out a cloth pai sho board and tiles he had carved himself, but there was only so long the healer could play before he was exhausted. Katara had been spending most of her time styling his hair and worrying about his lack of energy.</p><p>He told her it was just his way of dealing with the boredom of the long ride, which wasn't a complete lie. Sleeping was a good way for a firebender to spend the time Agni wasn't up, but it was also dangerous if his temperature dropped too low. He was just thankful that Tui's light helped keep that from happening. </p><p>He had never realized how close the power of the moon was compared to the sun. There were times Agni's sister's rising woke him as the sunrise did. He wasn't sure what would have happened if he wasn't blessed by the sibling spirits.</p><p>Well, he said blessed, but given how he had just been thrown out of Appa's saddle and into the ocean while he was meditating, that might have been the wrong word. He was just thankful he had the energy to keep his body from locking up from the icy water as he swam to the  surface. He didn't remember much after that was he pulled all the heat he could from the water and pulled himself onto the ice that formed other than three voices screaming his name.</p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>Spirit falling out of the saddle and into the sea was one of the most horrifying moments of Sokka's life, rating right up there with the day his mother was killed. He wasn't sure why La didn't take the firebender, but he thanked the ocean spirit as they were rushed into the city, completely ignoring the lock system, to get Spirit to their healer as quickly as possible. He vaguely noticed how beautiful and grand the place was, but that was nothing compared to his friend's blue lips and faltering breathing. </p><p>The healer woman was a no nonsense woman that made Sokka miss his Gran Gran like a missing limb as she berated the men for not bending the water out of Spirit's clothes as she did just that. Fear eased as the glow of water showed blue lips turn rosy and shuddering breaths deepened. He felt an urge to hug the elder for saving his friend, but setting for a smile instead. </p><p>As the healer sent the men who had brought them here outside, Sokka moved to Spirit's to really look at him. He was still as pale as a cloud, but not deathly so. His hair that Katara had been playing with since the guy joined them was a knotted mess right now, nothing like the intricate weave of braids it had been. He must have been staring, because when he looked up, the grandmotherly woman was back with soup.</p><p>He offered to try to feed Spirit and asked if there was a way to get some warmer clothes. He blushed at how he had missed just how cold the firebender must have been since they moved so far north from his home. Those robes were meant for autumn near Taku, not the poles during winter, but they hadn't remembered to go shopping after listening to the storyteller or going to the temple. The healer just smiled and handed him the bowl.</p><p>Spirit may or may not have been starving himself too. He was thinner than when they first met him and he downed the bowl like he hadn't eaten in days. By the time a parka showed up, the firebender had eaten four bowls of the fishy broth. </p><p>He didn't think about Yugoda changing Spirit into the nice, warm outfit as he was escorted to a feast the chief was throwing, but he probably should have. He arrived as the man announced theJun bending display, but seeing as he was pretty hungry, after seeing Katara and Aang were fine, he dug in, giving them updates on Spirit between mouthfuls. That wasn't the greatest idea when a gorgeous young lady sat down by him.</p><p>She had hair that rivaled Spirit's, only hers was like moonlit ice instead of a moonless winter sky. It contrasted with her skin the opposite way the firebender's did. Her blue eyes were like the ocean and he thought he might be in love.</p><p>She apologized for the benders that caused Spirit to end up in the water and asked how 'she' was. Her beautiful voice almost made him forget that no one here knew the healer was a guy and a firebender. This wasn't going to be fun.</p><p>He and Katara talked about Spirit and their home as Aang and the chief went to talk to the waterbending master. Katara's bending came up and the siblings learned that the Northern Watertribe had a rule about who was allowed to do what with their bending. According to Yue, the princess of the tribe, girls healed and boys fought. Now he knew he was going to have to stop Katara and Spirit from killing someone.</p><p>By morning Sokka had worried himself into a few hours of sleep, but he perked up when he found out that Yugoda had released Spirit from bed as she sent them on their way. It was barely dawn, so they moved to the training area to watch Aang get his first lesson. When Master Pakku refused to teach Katara as well, Sokka had to hold the firebender back.</p><p>Then the healer got a grin and settled down, which terrified the Southern boy until Spirit explained his plan. He would watch the lesson until he got his strength back, then Aang could show off what he learned. If Katara figured it out, that wasn't their fault. As for no boy healers, it was a good thing Sokka had grabbed a comb this morning. </p><p>Later that day, the Princess joined them as they watched the Avatar learn slowly. As she and Spirit talked, Sokka felt his body react. He couldn't help the mix of feelings those two caused, but he could try his best to ignore it. </p><p>As he combed the mats out of that black hair, he tried to justify his reaction. With clothes on, Spirit looked and acted like a girl. His voice was so damaged by smoke that it was hard to say if it was masculine or feminine unless Spirit was trying to sound like one or the other. His body saw two pretty girls and enjoyed the sight. It didn't matter that his brain knew one was a guy and the other was a princess.</p><p>When Yue offered to stay with Spirit while he joined the warriors in training, he all but fleed. Thankfully the exercise helped clear his head, but then he heard what the other men were talking about and he got mad. They were all mooning over Spirit!</p><p>They seemed to think it was fine to talk about his friend like that right in front of him. He left before they could say something to gross him out. Sadly, this became a pattern. Train and flee to avoid bad poetry about Spirit's various body parts.</p><p>When Spirit stopped coming to watch, things changed. Now gifts were showing up in front of the place they were living, the warriors spent most of training whining about the firebender not being there to watch them, and now the poetry was about Spirit's personality, or how they saw it. It was weird and disturbing. </p><p>It all came to a head when his friend pulled him aside and asked about traditional Southern watertribe war paint. Sokka got to live out that nearly forgotten fantasy of seeing Spirit in wolf colors. He pulled on a thick grey outfit Yue had given him and hid his hair. </p><p>That morning, the firebender jouned the training. It wasn't a bloodbath, but there were a lot of broken bones and bad cuts by the end. The worst part? Spirit took off changed clothes, washed off the paint, and went to his afternoon healing lesson where he then treated the men he had hurt.</p><p>Of course, that was when Master Pakku showed up going on about disrespect, tradition, and culture. Katara, Yugoda, and Spirit looked at him like he was spouting nonsense and continued what they were doing. The waterbending master didn't take that well and grabbed the younger two by the wrist.</p><p>Twin glares had Sokka storming over. These were his sister and best friend, he was not going to let this guy manhandle them. He was the son of Hakoda, chief of the Southern Watertribe, he was not going to let this slide.</p><p>Of course this led to the five of them standing before Arnook, who seemed confused, which was good, because Sokka was too. It seemed Master Pakku thought Spirit was spying on waterbending training then sharing the knowledge with Katara. Sokka was surprised today's incident wasn't the issue, but watched as the "girls" giggled.</p><p>A few comments about watching fiancés, healing classes, and hair care had the man then complaining about Sokka's actions in the healing hut. It was the master healer who came to his defense. It seemed his mother's necklace was a sign of betrothal and she claimed it was natural for a brother and sweetheart defending the women in his life.</p><p>There was an outcry from the guards, who glared ice daggers at Sokka before glaring at each other. Thankfully, yet again, Chief Arnook looked confused and brushed off Master Pakku's concerns. As they left the room, Spirit draped himself over Sokka which led to whispers and curses from almost every man they passed.</p><p>Usually, he would be annoyed at Spirit for causing a scene, but it felt nice. It also meant the lude comments would end and Katara could learn to bend without as much suspicion. He could learn to live with it.</p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>Aang felt pretty useless. He had not been able to help when Spirit almost drowned, he couldn't get Master Pakku to teach Katara too, he couldn't even master the forms well enough to teach them to Katara afterwards. Spirit was always correcting his forms during the show off sessions.</p><p>Now, he found out everyone thought the necklace he had made was his version of a betrothal necklace and he and Katara were together. Now he had to work twice as hard just to make sure she learned and wasn't mad at him for leading everyone on. That meant no more goofing off and letting Master Pakku push him harder.</p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>Katara loved Spirit. He was amazing, so when he almost died, she was understandably upset. She let Sokka go with the benders rushing the firebender to their healer so she could go with Aang to meet the chief. </p><p>The man apologized, but seemed mildly miffed Aang existed. His people had probably been waiting for the Avatar to be born to their tribe for nearly a century. Not that it made it better. </p><p>She wasn't allowed to go check on Spirit, so she had to wait for Sokka to arrive at the feast. He explained that the healer reminded him of Gran Gran, so he trusted her with their friend. He explained that the boy had eaten a lot of soup, which he thought was good since Spirit had been losing weight. He continued to talk between bites until the princess arrived.</p><p>She joined Sokka in talking about Spirit and how he was a healer and that led to talking about finding Aang in the iceberg, and they went even further back to talking about the South Pole in general. When her waterbending came up, she found out this place was not a very nice place to women. Only men could learn to fight with their bending.</p><p>She didn't tell Aang about the rule, so he tried to give up learning for her, but she couldn't let him do that. She ended up joining the toddlers in their healing lesson under Healer Yugoda instead learning from Master Pakku. It wasn't all bad.</p><p>Katara almost died when she found out the woman knew Spirit was a boy, but thought he was still promised to Sokka, who she thought didn't know Spirit was male. The young waterbender cried she was laughing so hard. When she eventually calmed down, she explained that Spirit was raised as a healer and lived as the woman who cared for him did.</p><p>Finding out about the betrothal necklace was a surprise, but it helped her find out that Master Pakku had made it for her Gran Gran. She let Yugoda know that Aang made hers and they started plotting. 9Lessons were a lot more fun after that.</p><p>Spirit was amazing as always and found a way for her to learn bending. Some planning with the elder healer helped them find a safe, secluded place to practice away from the critical eye of the battling master. Then came the next stage: discredit.</p><p>First, they made sure Aang showed off what he had learned where Pakku or one of his men would see. Second, have Spirit disguise himself and wipe the ice with the other fighters, but not the benders. Third, make sure all three of them were in the healing hut when the man showed up.</p><p>It worked beautifully. Sokka coming to their rescue only made it better. That blush on his face as Spirit acted like a doting girlfriend was so worth the lack of sleep.</p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>When those young warriors ran into her hut with a barely breathing, wet figure in a thin, discolored robe, Yugoda was furious. Both men were benders, but instead of removing the sea water from the clothes before moving her, they rushed the poor girl Tui knew how far in sopping wet wool in freezing temperatures. They were lucky they hadn't killed her.</p><p>Her betrothed stood to the side with pleading eyes that tore at her heart. She stoked up the girl's chi and set it to warming her body and regulating her heartbeat that had started to falter and the boy's eyes softened lovingly as his beloved stabilized. Wanting to berate the pair away from her patient, she drug the full grown men out of her hut and let them know just how badly they had messed up.</p><p>To calm herself, Yugoda grabbed a pot of broth from the other room and a bowl before returning to the couple. The boy was holding the girl's hand and tracing his eyes over her face as if trying to memorize it. When he noticed her return, he thanked her and offered to feed his intended for her. </p><p>She smiled at his dedication to the girl when he asked if there was a way to get her warmer clothes. She was sure her patient was in good hands as she went out in search of a thick parka long enough for such a tall young lady. She hadn't planned on being out long, but she ran into the princess who wanted to know how their guest was.</p><p>It seemed her patient had been traveling with the Avatar when the outer guards had scared the boy's flying beast, throwing the poor girl into La's depths. Seemed the girl was luckier than she had thought. The ocean spirit was rarely so generous. </p><p>Surprise was a good thing, but only in moderation. The next few hours were packed full of surprises. They included her patient actually being a male and having gold eyes, finding out her patient was a healer, Princess Yue arriving in the middle of the night crying, finding out her chief was planning on marrying off his daughter to a boy well known for his stupidity and cruelty, her patient turning a carved wooden pai sho tile into a necklace and proposing to the weeping girl, and that her patient had been raised by a spirit of healing in the form of a cat.</p><p>When she found out that two of the Avatar's companions were her long lost friend Kanna's grandchildren, she was fully expecting to be told Pakku was their grandfather. Compared to the night before,  this was unsurprising as was the boy not realizing he liked both young Spirit and Princess Yue. Plotting against Arnook and Pakku made Yugoda feel like a child again, getting in trouble with her best friend. </p><p>Helping Katara find a safe place to practice her bending was nothing compared to Spirit's plan to made Pakku look like the ignorant bully he was. She and the princess helped as best they could, but oddly enough Sokka was the one helping them the most without even knowing. When it played out, it was a thing of beauty.</p><p>The only thing better was Arnook asking her about the spirits and a way around their unwanted blessings. It seemed Tui and Agni were having fun with the betrothal necklace the princess was wearing. The ribbon froze the chief's chosen suitor's fingers when he tried to take it off to replace it with his own and the pendant burned the girl's father as well.</p><p>It seemed Princess Yue and Spirit truly were engaged. She hoped the boy took the news well. They were more like brother and sister in the healers eyes, but it seemed the sibling spirits disagreed. </p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>Even before the news arrived that there were visitors from the south, Yue had known. It was like knowing where the sea was without seeing or hearing it. Or more accurately, like feeling the sun on your skin before you wake to the morning. </p><p>What she learned from Yugoda and later Sokka and Katara did not prepare her for meeting Spirit. He was kind and caring like she had heard, but none of compared to his sense of justice and love of mischief. He was the chaos to her calm and the world finally felt right.</p><p>He had proposed to her before they had even really been introduced. When she asked why, he said it was for several reasons, including how his mother had been miserable in an arranged marriage. He made her a betrothal necklace right there in his bed from a game piece and a ribbon from his tangled hair. </p><p>She spent the night he was in the healing hut with him talking. He wasn't an amazing storyteller, but he was good at descriptions and really got his tale through. He seemed to like her stories and looked at her like she was the moon.</p><p>The next day when he and Sokka were watching the benders, she happily joined them. If Spirit was warm to sit near, that was their secret, just her and the Avatar's party. She couldn't remember the last time she was this comfortable in public and no one would whisper about how improper it was for the princess to sit with two men, because everyone thought Spirit was a girl. </p><p>When Sokka left them to join the training himself, her companion went from meek to fiendish in a heartbeat. He was the playful shadow cast by the sun, and as any shadow, he was just as mischievous by the light of the moon. Suffice it to say, she was full on board with her betrothed shaking the North up a little. </p><p>His rebelliousness seemed to be suffusive. Aang, Katara, and Sokka weren't from the North, so it made sense they did not wish to follow the traditions and culture now that they were here, but Yugoda was a different story. She was breaking away from over 70 years of practices and rules she had lived by. Watching his plan unfold was like watching ice slowly melt in the sunlight, natural and unassuming but dangerous if not corrected.</p><p>Tui and Agni must have been enjoying themselves when Spirit proposed, because it seemed the union was blessed by both. She had thought the coolness at her nape and warmth against her throat was just her body growing accustomed to the necklace's presence around her neck. She must have been wrong because when she told her father she could not become engaged to Han because she was claimed by another, two different injuries occurred. </p><p>Han had tried to untie the ribbon angrily as their fathers questioned her in outrage, but his fingers went numb and turned blue with cold in a mere moment. That stunned all three into silence until her father grabbed the pendant to look at the engraving only to rip back his burned hand with a shout. Only her years of training to be the perfect princess kept her from grinning. </p><p>Han shouted demands and the older men muttered among themselves. When asked to remove the necklace herself, Yue had Spirit's response at the ready. It worked just as she knew it would.</p><p>"I was given life by the Moon, I cannot disobey her now. This is Tui's will."</p><p>While Han ordered her to defy the great spirit, his father understood the consequences. Her father was clearly upset, but he nodded and dismissed her. If she giggled and smiled the whole back to her room and fell asleep smiling, those three needn't know.</p><p>The next morning, she saw the other half of her fiancé's plan unfurl in a satisfying manner. If she hadn't been the one to gift him the husky fox trousers and jacket, she doubted she would have recognized him. He looked like a strong, dependable warrior with war paint that made him look like a son of La. He took down nearly every Northmen with a machete and club and then vanished. </p><p>She knew where he had gone, but the others didn't. She saw her father watching with a look she couldn't recognize, but it didn't stop her from going down to the yard to offer words of comfort as the injured were taken to the healing huts where she knew the waterbending master would soon confront Katara. All she needed to do was let it happen. </p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>Chief Arnook was not having the best week.</p><p>First, the Avatar arrived, not as the babe they had been waiting a century for, but a 12-year-old airbender from the Southern Air Temple. He brought the children of the Southern watertribe's chief with him and the girl was a bender who wanted to learn to fight. Pakku set her straight, but it was still a possible issue.</p><p>Second, his daughter mysteriously became engaged to an unknown man the night of her birthday feast. He was fairly certain the warrior who wiped out his entire nonbender force singlehandedly while Yue beamed proudly from the sidelines. He didn't know who the man was, but he too must be spirit touched like the princess if the great spirits were blessing their betrothal so. He had thought it was Hakoda's heir, but if the meeting between the three healers, Pakku and the boy proved that wrong. The girl who had also drowned when the Avatar arrived was betrothed to young Sokka and the daughter to the airbender. </p><p>This meant one of his own men had attacked their own and stole the princess's hand without speaking to him, which was the third issue. That was not the kind of man he wanted as his heir. It wasn't the kind of man he wanted as family, but it looked like he was trapped.</p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>Spirit vaguely recalled being fed something very salty, which meant they were either on a waterbender ship or they had found the Northern Tribe, but that fled his mind as his guardian changed his clothes. It was something that happened far more often than it should, but he just couldn't understand why the Herbalist of Taku was so far from home. He smiled at how she looked in blue before falling back to sleep. </p><p>Next thing he knew, he felt the moon enter the room with him and cry to the woman he had earlier mistaken for the healer he had grown up with. The moon looked like a girl around his age with deeply tanned skin, violet blue eyes, and hair so white and bright. He couldn't just let her cry, but he needed to know what was wrong first, so he listened.</p><p>She wasn't the moon, just it's child, but she was also the daughter of the Northern Watertribe's chief. Her father had picked someone for her to marry now that she was old enough, but it was someone she was scared of. Remembering his own mother and her fear of his father, he tried to recall anything about watertribe courting he might have heard.</p><p>He knew a lot of the marriages were arranged so bloodlines could grow more powerful like how it was in the Fire Nation, but he thought the men he talked to said the woman could refuse the offer. Maybe he had misheard or misremembered what had been said, but he did remember hearing about how they used to give their intended a handcrafted token as a sign of their impending union.</p><p>He was fairly sure the necklace he had on was one such item, likely made by Sokka and Katara's father for their mother. He couldn't make something like that, but he did have the knotweed tile from his pai sho set he made tucked away in his hair where Katara had used it as a bead. That and the blue ribbon she had given him would work, if she accepted. </p><p>Her laugh was wet and edging on being a sob, but she nodded when he offered himself as a way to keep her from a terrible marriage. He fashioned the necklace and offered it to her for inspection, which had both women's eyes wide in disbelief, but the moon's daughter took the wooden tile in gloved hands. It wasn't long before she returned it to him, turned away from him, and lifted her hair to expose her neck to him.</p><p>Until she moved her snowy locks, he had thought she was rejecting the offer, which he would completely understand given he was a strange boy disguised as a girl. He tied the ribbon with numbing fingers then slumped in exhaustion. As tiring as the crafting and tying had been to his weakened body, it was worth it to see Agni's light come from the smile of Tui's daughter. </p><p>As he lay there regaining his strength, the two of them talked under Healer Yugoda's watch. He explained why he had felt the need to help her and spoke of his life after the Battle for Shu Valley and she told him spirit tales and her early years. They continued like that until the moon set and he couldn't keep his eyes open anymore and fell asleep quickly after the older woman insisted he rest.</p><p>When he woke, he could feel the pull of energy stirring his chi coming from two places. The first was the sun, rising lazily on the horizon.  The second was from the girl asleep in the cot beside him, holding his hand in her gloved grip.</p><p>He was careful not to wake Yue as he got up from the bed, but he must have done something to alert Healer Yugoda he was awake because she was in the room before he finished getting to his feet. A moment of glowing water against his chest and he was led out of the room. She fed him stewed sea prunes and pointed out that he had given the fire element pai sho piece as the pendant for the necklace.</p><p>He had frozen, mid chew to lock eyes with her. She didn't say anything, but he was possitive she knew. He was surprised she didn't care, just like Katara hadn't. </p><p>They ate in silence after that and didn't say anything until Sokka came to check on him. The look Yugoda gave them was judgemental, but he was fairly sure it was because she thought the necklace he was wearing was from Sokka and that he was leading the boy on. Katara was going to love that.</p><p>He smiled softly as he saw Katara and Aang arrive safely on the field, but it fled his fury when the master refused to teach his friend because she was a girl. If Sokka hadn't wrapped his arms around Spirit's waist, the boy would have taken the man down right there and then. His only comfort was the airbender offering to learn from someone other than that jerk.</p><p>Then a thought came to him and the anger morphed into spite and amusement. There was a poetic and simple way around this. Aang just had to be engaged to Katara like he was to the princess.</p><p>He had already given her that necklace, so all they had to do was say it was a sign of betrothal. It was normal for a young man to show off for his intended. If she learned to bend from it, no rules were broken and it would rub that pompous man a lesson that would leave an impression. </p><p>Sokka must have figured out the secret to calming his down was hair touching, because when he got worked up in the planning, a comb just appeared and found its way to the wreck his hair had ended up in. Sokka didn't have Katara's knack for untangling, but he was meticulous. Spirit couldn't help but melt into the tender touches.</p><p>When she woke up, Princess Yue joined them. Not that she looked like she had stayed up most of the night and slept in a strange bed until midday. She did however offer to sit here with him so Sokka could join the other nonbenders training. It looked like Sokka liked Yue, so he didn't tell him about their impromptu engagement the night before. </p><p>One, that wasn't something you bought up in public when the other person tended to freak out. Two, he hadn't asked the princess if she was alright with him telling the others. Three, that was a conversation he and Sokka needed to have after the boy sorted his feelings out, not before. </p><p>After the slightest blush, the Southern warrior went to get his weapons, leaving the two "girls" to plan the fall of the patriarchy. They worked on getting Katara the training she deserved, but that wasn't all. Spirit was going to follow the rules in that he was going to heal dressed as a girl and fight all comers as looking like a man.</p><p>He saw how they fought, they hadn't seen actual fighting in generations. One squadron would be able to take the North if there were no waterbenders and even with benders, the city was doomed if the Fire Nation Navy attacked. He would just be showing them they were not as prepared as they thought they were.</p><p>Once they settled on a plan, they started working. With Katara, he worked on getting her abilities honed, both healing and fighting. Yue was wonderful and got him anything he needed, including a wonderfully warm fighting suit and face paint in white, grey, and black. Yugoda helped with information on Master Pakku, where was safe to practice bending, and how he could get the chief to let them get by with it all.</p><p>It took a few days of eating massive amounts of fatty meat and basking in the sun, but Spirit finally felt normal again, no longer exhausted and listless. He realized he felt stronger and tired slower when Yue was around, which he was fairly sure was due to her close tie to the moon and the moon's connection with the sun. He wasn't sure how to prove this, but he did know he could use it to his advantage. </p><p>He made sure the princess was going to be in their usual spot before he asked Sokka to paint his face. He wasn't sure if the warrior realized he was doing it,  but he spent the entire time softly reciting a prayer to La and Tui. He didn't point it out, but Tui must have heard because he felt energy flowing into him from three places as he entered the training field.</p><p>Agni was just above the horizon, offering his rays, as usual. Then of course, there was Yue on the sidelines, adding fuel to his inner fire. He just wasn't expecting the setting moon to be felt after dawn, but today she seemed to be cheering him on.</p><p>Taking those men down with that much power behind him almost felt unfair, but then again, so was their rules about women fighting. Some of the best fighters he knew were women, like Azula for example. The idea of a prodigy like her being denied training was horrible and he was certain Katara was just that if the progress she had made over the last few days was anything to go by.</p><p>Getting changed, washing away the paint, and getting to the healing hut was the hardest part of the plan so far. He had asked Aand to show them his newest move when Yugoda said the bending master would be in the area, so he was fairly sure that part of the plan was in place. Chief Arnook had been there during the training, so he should asume the fighter was Yue's intended from the way she reacted to the fight. Now, he just needed Sokka to be there for the third and final stage.</p><p>It actually worked much better than he had planned. He hadn't expected Pakku to demand Yugoda to join them when they were taken in front of the Northern leader, but it was just another point in their favor. The Waterbending Master looked furiously confused that he wasn't being taken seriously and that was perfect. </p><p>He probably should have taken it easier on Sokka with the clinginess, but it was getting the attention he wanted. Soon, all the men would know Spirit was spoken for, so they should not make the comments they had during training and that they were lucky her beloved hadn't fought them. It would also distract them from looking for the man who had showed them up so badly, if they didn't assume it had been Sokka defending her honor.</p><p>If nothing else, it had been fun.</p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>Back out on the sea, Zhao was greeting his new advisor, sent straight from the Fire Lord himself. General Iroh had been a legend before his son's death broke him, so there were worse people he could have been assigned. The reason the Admiral was pleased to see him was because of his reputation for handling spirits. If the washed up prince could stop Miyuki, Zhao would give him part of the credit when they won this battle. </p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>If there was one thing Iroh knew, it was how to spot insanity. He saw it in King Bumi when the Order met, in his younger brother's eyes since he took the throne, he even occationally in Azula, but those instances were less often these days. Admiral Zhao was the worst case he had ever seen.</p><p>His ships were going in circles, but the man didn't notice. They were hours from shore, but Jeong Jeong's former student thought they were a moon cycle from the last port. His men were ferried to shore at night so they could escape the mad man, but he blamed it all on a cat.</p><p>It was clear the man hadn't been sleeping and he smelled as though he wasn't washing either. The whole mission was a breath from falling apart and Iroh couldn't afford to fail this mission if he wanted to see his niece again. Ozai would have him imprisoned at best, but more likely he would be executed for trason of some type.</p><p>A cup of tea and the mad man was out of the way for the rest of the day. Getting the men sorted took a fair bit of convincing, but there wasn't going to be any more desertion. They actually regained some of the lost men when they resupplied.</p><p>With the easy parts taken care of, he turned his attention to the spirit on board. She was a lovely pure cat who seemed pleased by his treats of pigeontuna and dried fruit with full cream milk. He spoke to her at length and from her reactions he assumed she had been provoked.</p><p>The crew were more than happy to tell him about every person and spirit the sleeping man had angered. It was surprising Zhao was alive after his encounter with the Yuyan and the commander of the Pohuai Stronghold, let alone the healer that he had accosted. It seemed this spirit cat was from area and the spirit was that healer's guardian. </p><p>He knew he could not stop justice from being served, but he did ask that she only torment the Admiral and not the fleet and crews. Iroh was fairly possitive he had just forfeited the man's life, but if it allowed him to return to Azula, he would killthe man himself. He wasn't losing another child.</p><p>It was bad enough that poor Zuko's soul could not find rest after the betrayal of his father, but it seemed from his friend's letter that the Avatar was being lead by what remained of his sweet boy. He needed to put the late Prince to rest and to do that, he needed to speak with the Avatar. And since the Avatar had last been seen heading north, it was clear that the Northern Watertribe was where he needed to go.</p><p>He just needed to find a way to take the North Pole without mass slaughter. Zuko had seen enough bloodshed in life, he didn't deserve to have to witness even more in death. If he was to put the ghost of his nephew to rest, he needed this to happen as peacefully as possible. He just hoped he wasn't too late.</p><p> </p><p>'(•V•)'</p><p> </p><p>Miyuki had a new patient. This one smelled similar to her kitten and had chi knots just like the ones she had untangled three years before. This wasn't her kitten's sire, but the sire's littermate. </p><p>She liked this one for the same reasons she had chosen her kitten, this one recognized her for what she was and treated her kindly. This one was too old for her to train, but she could still help him. It was what her kitten would want.</p><p>She had no intention of stopping her torment of the mind sick fleatick, but she would leave the others alone. It wasn't as though she had been doing much lately anyway. The fleatick had been causing most of his own problems and Tui and La had done the rest.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Partially inspired by joyousawakening - Zuko in Water Tribe war paint<br/>https://joyousawakening.tumblr.com/post/629306245019566080/zuko-in-water-tribe-war-paint-a-collage-inspired</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>